In 1985, NUCLEAR ASSAULT came charging out of the underground, kicking down punk and metal boundaries, brutally trampling clichés, and leaving many of their thrash-for-thrash's-sake contemporaries flattened and groaning on the roadside. The hodgepodge of scathing speed metal power, apocalyptic political themes, beerswilling goofery, and plain jane production swirled together brilliantly, making for some spectacular records. A more genuine project than S.O.D., but much funnier and more interesting than say, THE CRUMBSUCKERS and a lot of the Bay area stuff, NUCLEAR ASSAULT have earned a well-deserved place in the Reagan-era thrash maelstrom. The question loomed, with Danny Lilker always involved in a million projects and the rest of the band on hiatus, would the mushroom cloud ever rise again? You bet your big, drippy Mr. Softee cone it would.

"Third World Genocide" is nothing short of a barnstorming return to form. From Danny's rib-thumping basslines to Connelly's ambulance-siren war cries, it's all here and it's just itching to level your apartment building. Few bands of the genre are capable of such a return to a classic sound without smelling like the contents of an old Tupperware container from the back of the fridge. The NUCLEAR ASSAULT boys (with help of new guitarist Scott Harrington) get the job done with an amazingly solid set of songs, that magical (dare I say) DIY soundboard vibe, and lots of remarkably fluid mosh-it-up engine revs.

It's not the churning, midpaced ferocity of tracks like "Glen's Song" (with a groove similar to SLAYER's "Stain of Mind"), the chickin' pickin' yuk-yuks of "Long Haired Asshole" or mock 77-style punk of "Whine and Cheese" that make "Third World Genocide" worthy to stand with N.A.'s back catalog. No, this album triumphs primarily through the couple of tracks that casually trounce the band's past achievements. "Defiled Innocence" will instantly take you back to a time when slow tempo double-bass and mounds of lead guitar were actually a great idea (the low-dirt chorused melodies only add dollops of extra appeal). And the riffs of the perfectly titled "Living Hell" will tenderize your unsullied forehead with spiked armband Mantas chug-craft. This game ain't over by a long shot.

- Marchman

OFFICIAL SITE: www.nuclearassault.us

MP3 SOUND SCRAP: Price of Freedom

RELATED ITEMS: Beastial Myths & Legends: NUCLEAR ASSAULT.